“Italy today is far more Etruscan in its pulse than Roman; and will always be so. The Etruscan element is like the grass of the field and the sprouting of corn, in Italy: it will always be so.”

Take a step out of time and become immersed in a taste of the *real* Italy. The ‘hidden’ food and wine regions of Ciociaria & Molise in Central Italy are just waiting to be rediscovered by epicurean explorers and have been naturally organic & biodynamic regions for thousands of years. Follow us to the Wild Heart of Italy ♥️ Seek the Extraordinary.

Our next cultural adventures for foodie explorers & aficionados to Ciociaria and Molise for 2019/2020 are outlined below. Reservations are now open for September 2019 and we are taking enquiries for Christmas 2019 and September 2020. Each of our tour itineraries are created bespoke and no tour is ever the same. We will be staying in unique heritage accommodation in a series of different mountaintop villages throughout 2019 and 2020, take a look at the options below to discover which one resonates with you most. It would be our absolute pleasure to share a very special Ciociarian and Molisean food and wine cultural adventure with you. Kelly & Paolo Picarazzi

Our home for this adventure is a beautifully restored 18th Century noble’s palace in an ancient mountaintop village, first mentioned in Virgil’s ‘Aeneid’. An 8 day / 7 nights’ focus on local food and wine experiences and cultural adventures. Our September cultural adventure for foodie aficionados features a private and guided tour of Il Giardino di Ninfa – renowned as one Europe’s most beautiful gardens. We also visit the stunningly remote neighbouring region of Molise, steeped in ancient Samnite civilisation history. FIND OUT MORE >>

An incredibly unique and once-in-a-lifetime experience, a traditional Italian Christmas in a 1,000 year old mountaintop village. You will be staying in private luxury self-catering apartments within the walls of a medieval castle. Itinerary highlights include a Christmas Eve long table dinner with local prosecco and wines; Christmas Day mass at a 1,000 year old Abbey and a fine-dining Christmas Day lunch with an 8-course degustation with paired wines; and truffle-hunting in a Ciociarian forest and vineyard on St Stephen’s Day (Boxing Day). FIND OUT MORE >>

An immersive fine-dining and local food and wine travel experience for cultural connoisseurs seeking to venture off the beaten track to discover a whole new authentic experience of regional Italy. We have hand-picked our favourite food, wine and cultural experiences of Ciociaria, Molise and nearby regions – including private guided tours of both the Monastero Sacro Speco of Subiaco and Il Giardino di Ninfa, as well as a seaside visit to the Ulysses Riviera for lunch on a sailing boat. FIND OUT MORE >>

A unique 8 day / 7 nights’ itinerary centered around learning traditional Ciociarian cooking techniques with Molisean copper utensils and woodfired ovens, cooking with seasonal and organic produce in a region famed for its truffles, wild asparagus, wild fennel, wild boar and recipes tracing back to Medieval, Roman and Etruscan times. Includes foraging expeditions, wine pairing and classes at a new School of Gastronomy in the region. FIND OUT MORE >>

TESTIMONIAL:

“…just perfect for the adventurous, the curious, those who are tired of crowds and tourist restaurants, and for those who dislike moving from hotel to hotel to make the most of their vacation. It’s a great fit for those who want to learn more and appreciate more, and who want to extract the very essence of life from every day, and who are flexible enough to confidently do so.”Janette, Australia. Guest on both September and December 2018 tours – read more…

OUR ETHOS

We host small, sustainable group tours to Ciociaria and Molise of between 6 and maximum 12 guests. Some of our tours are maximum 8 guests. These regions are unopened to mass tourism and we aim to keep it that way, to preserve their charm and authenticity for visitors. We hold our tours during low seasons, so by joining us you are supporting the well-being of the local Ciociarian and Molisean communities we visit. Grazie mille on behalf of all of our friends there.

SILVER COMPASS TOURS MEMBERS:

SILVER COMPASS TOURS PRESENTS: WILD HEART OF ITALY

Follow us to the Wild Heart of Italy – a food and wine cultural encounter with the ‘hidden’ regions of Ciociaria and Molise in Central Italy. Just a few hours south from Rome, in between Rome and Naples, it’s a whole world away...

ABOUT SILVER COMPASS TOURS

Curators of charming food and wine travel experiences, we have a focus on slow, sustainable and immersive small-group tours.

We specialise in packaged and hosted travel experiences in the food and wine regions of Orange in regional New South Wales, Australia and the ‘hidden’ regions of Ciociaria and Molise in Central Italy that we call home – all of which are food and wine lovers’ dream destinations.

Our mission is to create enjoyable food and wine cultural travel experiences that enrich people’s lives by enhancing their discovery of people, places and new ideas.

Silver Compass Tours acknowledges the Wiradjuri people as the traditional custodians of the lands in which we operate and conduct our business in Orange, NSW. We pay our respects to the Elders – past, present and emerging – for holding the memories, traditions, culture and hopes of this place.